November 2014 Year 61 #11

Ray and Julies’s ‘64 Studebaker Avanti R2 has been sold to someone in the state of Washington. The Greenias have had the Avanti for 20 years. This car has been such a big part of our club gatherings over the years, the blue beauty will be missed. Ray said he has had a hard time finding folks qualified to work on it and he is getting to the point he would rather not be climbing around the car any longer doing maintenance himself… so he decided to sell. Ray found it in a Hemmings ad in 1994 located in Queens, NY and brought it home to Burlington. Continued on page 6

The Official Monthly Publication of “Vermont Automobile Enthusiasts” by “The Vermont Antique Automobile Society” VAAS Directors VAE OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS Wendell Noble– Chairman Wheel Tracks Editor (Ex-Officio) Charlie Thompson– Secretary Gary Fiske Jim Sears – Chairman Dick Wheatley-Treasurer Home 802-933-7780 802-482-2698 [email protected] Gael Boardman cell 802-363-1642 Robert Lalancette – President Tom McHugh [email protected] 802-849-2692 [email protected] David Sander 2503 Duffy Hill Road Dan Noyes - 1st vice & Activities Chair Bob Chase Enosburg Falls, Vermont 05450 802-730-7171 [email protected] Dave Lamphere- 2nd. Vice & Assistant Activity Edi Fiske—Wheel Tracks proof-reader Chair 802-878-4020 [email protected] MEMBERSHIP SUPPORT TEAM Clark & Isabelle Wright- Burma Shave editors Membership Secretary (Ex-Officio) Rachel Smith- Webmaster Dick Wheatley- Treasurer Christina McCaffrey 802-879-9455 [email protected] 89 Ledge Road Sunshine Chair Bill Sander,- Recording Secretary Burlington VT 05401-4140 Christina McCaffrey 802-862-3133 802-644-5487 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Joanna Therren Conti 802-244-8375 [email protected] Les Skinner Exp. 2014 802-485-8150 Welcoming Committee Ed Hilbert 802-453-3743 David Hillman VAE Show Chairs/Board Ex-Officio [email protected] Antique and Classic Car Meet (Stowe) Auditors– Leo Laferriere, Doris Bailey, Bob Chase, Chair, 802-253-4897 L. Brown & Sons of Barre, VT- publisher Ray Tomlinson Duane Leach, Co-Chair, 802-849-6174

Your editor and other authors ***Contact Us At*** Mission Statement: are made aware of some new [email protected] The Vermont Antique Wheel Tracks is a monthly products, services or or Automobile Society is a tax newsletter published in information that they feel may ***Our Website at*** free 501c3 organization have value to VAE’s print and electronically for membership. These products, vtauto.org dedicated to the the public, and for the preservation, protection, services or informationals are VAE/VAAS membership. not an endorsement by the VAE Membership promotion and unless otherwise noted. The appreciation of automotive Only $30 Monthly deadline opinions are solely those of the history and technology. 2 years The 10th particular article’s author. $50

EvEnts…. What’s nExt ?

December November December 7th. at 1PM…... November 1st at 11:45AM….. The Annual Business Meeting will be held The December Christmas meet of the VAE will be held Saturday November 1st at the Holy Family Parish at The Steak House, 1239 US Route 302-Berlin, Barre, Hall in Essex Junction. The building is located on 802.479.9181 Route 2a. From the Five Corners, head about a ¼ We will start with a VAE Business Meeting that will mile toward Colchester, turn left up Lincoln Ter, and include updates on the Shelburne Museum Show, VAE then take a left on School St. toward the Hall parking Show at Stowe, and upcoming meets and tours for 2015. lot. We will be setting up at 11am and you should arrive at 11:45. Terry Riggs of Fletcher will tell us A lunch menu will be available on your own from about his experience in the Great Race road rally at the restaurant. We will then follow with a Yankee noon. At 12:35 our food arrives. By 1:15 we should Swap. To participate in this fun event bring a wrapped start the meeting with a 3pm scheduled conclusion. gift that you will exchange for an unknown gift or You will be getting an invitation in the mail. Please someone else’s. Afterward, some trading should be tear off the bottom of the page and select your meal expected and is perfectly acceptable so that, as much as choice. The cost of the meal is $15 each. Don’t possible, everyone goes home with a gift they are happy forget to put your names on the response and mail with. your check (made out to the VAE) to Jim Sears. There is a rumor that Elvis may be in attendance. For more information please contact Dan Noyes 730-7171 or [email protected]

WHEEL TRACKS….vtauto.org November 2014 PAGE 2

From thE PrEsidEnt… Bob Lalancette

We get used to doing things in a certain way. It seems we are always looking backwards. Not looking forward to realize that a change would be good for us. Our actions become habit. We prepare equipment to do a job, plan on not doing something else because we don’t have the space to move another project along. I am at this stage in a lot of areas in my life. One of those areas has to do with the future weather and how to deal with it. The first year I moved to Fairfax, I did not snow plow. I did not have the means to deal with snow. I just packed it down with the four wheel drive truck. The major storms were plowed out by a neighbor. The next summer I bought an old tractor and put a plow on the back. It looks like it’s been around the field a few times. I fixed the ma- jor things that were worn and I’ve been looking backwards ever since. It sits waiting to attack the snow, staying at 35 degrees in the attached garage, taking up space. Things had to change. I found a plow to put on the truck. The tractor will be parked outside under a tarp. I’ll make sure the transmission does not have any water in it and that the antifreeze is good. The added room will allow me to work on a Ford body. I don’t know if I’ll miss freezing my butt off for an hour and a half or looking backwards for that time. The Massey has been a trouble free piece. I’m kinda looking forward to this change, hoping not to look backwards again.

your Editor… Gary Fiske

I will miss seeing Julie and Ray Greenia’s beautiful Avanti in our meets. I can understand Ray’s logic in finding a new home for the Studebaker but it must have been a sad day when it was loaded to head West to it’s new home. I had a car that made a lot of memories for me and that I sold a lot of years ago. I think if I wanted to I could take you to the spot I was standing in when the new owner drove it away. One positive came out of my transaction and I am sure it is the same for Ray and Julie….you know where it is going and you are fairly sure it will be taken care of. That is certainly true in my case. I happen to run across my old car a few summers ago; I could not have done a better job preserving it.

VAE membership renewals are around the corner. You save us a lot of work when you renew your membership before the last day of the year. And….you save us a huge amount of work if you pay for more than one year. The board approved a deal in their last meeting where you can save $10.00 by booking 2 years with this great club……$30.00 for one year & $50.00 for two years. Really screw us up and send us $100.00 for four years then sit back and watch us do the math. I can’t speak for the board but I’ll bet it will fly! I will be sending reminder cards for you who needs reminding.

I got a look from our proof reader this month. She thinks the issue is really “wordy” and long winded. I wonder what kind of comments will float my way. I think I might have just a little more than usual ‘man-stuff’ in this month but that is just me. This is the first month in memory that I used all of the material that you folks sent to Wheel Tracks and have nothing left over. So, please, help fill that file back up and send me some of your favorite articles. You don’t want a lot of my stuff in the coming months, I can be boring.

I understand the Conti family have had a couple of birthdays lately. Happy birthday Ronnie and Conception!

VAAS LISTENING POST... from Wendell Noble, Chairman

One of the necessary tasks this time of the year, is proposing a budget for next year. To me, that’s not a very interesting subject. As soon as we put dollar signs on things, my eyes start to glaze over. However, the process does raise an interesting point. Balancing our budget proposal requires that we cut down on some things we’ve been doing . Specifically, we should rethink our policy of writing checks to other worthy nonprofits. In some cases it makes sense and is in keeping with our educational mission. In other cases it makes little sense to be soliciting donations to the VAAS and then turn around and give it to another unrelated nonprofit. Let’s look for situations where we can make an in-kind contribution that is of more value than a check for a few hundred dollars. For example, by partnering with the Shelburne Museum to put on a car show, we help them to bring in revenue, new visitors and possibly new sustaining members. At the same time, we are doing what we do best and enjoy the most. Perhaps we could be of help to Good News Garage by offering our automotive knowledge and experience to some of their clientele, thus keeping some badly needed cars on the road a bit longer. There are certainly other ideas we can all come up with in our own communities. Then all that is needed is initiative. They don’t have to be big team projects. One person doing one thing is worthwhile.

WHEEL TRACKS.. vtauto.org November 2014 PAGE 3 “thE soFtEr sidE”

A Column Shared by Mary Noble (Left), Christine Stone (Ctr) & Nancy Olney (Right)

STOWE SHOW MUSINGS….. By Mary Noble

Once again, I marvel at the work of the dedicated people who put together our Car Show at Stowe. I am pretty sure they are already at work for next year, in fact. Despite the rain and wind on Thursday, the next three days were pleasant and sunny, a little muddy, but great by Sunday! The kitchen team this year certainly presented many, many delicious meals. Then there was the setting up for vendors, car parking, registration booth, where Gael Boardman and Serge Benoit made announcements throughout the Show. There was the car corral, crafts tent, and the information booth.

The souvenir tent was an excellent vantage point to get a valuable perspective on the show. Thanks to Tom Alag of Shelter Logic for giving us a large white tent to work from. It gave us room for displaying things for sale and room for people who needed a place to sit out of the sun. They also had one of their tents set up nearby to be raffled off to a VAE member. Non-members could qualify by signing up on the spot, which they did. We gained a substantial number of members as a result. The winner was a lady who signed up about ten minutes before the drawing. Then there was the fashion show competition (Thanks, Julie, for covering that for me). The “everywhere needed twosome”, Duane Leach and Bob Chase, who were always (mostly) smiling and al- ways helpful. If I wore a hat, it would be off to them! Also, to Chris Barbieri for his many interviews promoting the Show. Thanks to Nancy Olney for staying at the booth so that I could be with Wendell in the parade. Also to Isabelle and Clark Wright, Theresa Rayta and Anita Bean.

Our constant interaction with the public provided us with interesting comments and suggestions. Many were valuable and a few were just “off the wall.” Some didn’t care for the car on the back of the sweatshirts, unless of course it happened to be their favorite car. So since we can’t please everyone, maybe just the VAE logo or show date should be on the back! Others would like a pocket on the tee shirts, tank tops, sleeveless tees, hats, VAE decals, pencils with VAE or Stowe Show on them. Several people would like to have the option of a three-day pass, rental carts for handicapped people and, as part of the judging awards, a “teen choice award”. Another suggestion was to have a tent for Bingo if someone would like to sponsor it.

The field is now empty and shows little evidence that it just hosted the best car show in the northeast. After a little bit of a breather, I look forward to being a part of it again.

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When If Caution You To Rest In Burma

You Drive Ceases Are Apt Pieces….. Shave

Some “One-liners” …………

As long as there a tests, there will be prayer in public schools. A child asked his father, "How were ####### people born?" So his father said, "Adam and Laugh alone and the world thinks you are an idiot. Eve made babies, then their babies became adults and made babies, and so on." The child then went to ####### his mother, asked her the same question and she told him, "We were monkeys then we evolved to Sometimes I wake up grumpy; other times I let her sleep become like we are now." The child ran back to his father and said, "You fibbed to me!" His father ####### replied, "No, your mom was talking about her side of the family." The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the ability to reach it.

************ #######

A couple were sitting in the lawyers office working You can’t have everything. Where would you put it? on their will. The lawyer tells them that they should discuss end of life issues how they want to be ####### treated. The man turns to his wife and says, “Please promise me that if I am ever dependent only on I took an IQ test and the results were negative. machines and bottled fluids to keep me alive, you ####### will take action and put an end to it right away.” So when they got home, his obedient wife went OK, who stopped the payment on my reality check? straight to the TV and unplugs it, then took his beer ####### and pours it down the drain. We were born naked, wet and hungry. Then things got worse.

********** #######

A young boy saw an elderly couple sitting down to 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot. lunch at a fast food restaurant. He noticed that they had ordered one meal. As he watched, the ####### gentleman carefully divided the hamburger in half, then counted out the fries, one for him, one for Be nice to your kids. They’ll choose your nursing home. her, until each had half of them. The old man began to eat, but his wife just sat watching. ####### The young boy decided to ask them if he could buy them another meal. The old gentleman said, “Oh no. If at first you don’t succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried. We’ve been married 50 years, and everything has always been and will always be shared, 50/50.” ####### The young boy then asked the wife if she was going to eat. I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges. She replied, “It’s his turn with the teeth.” #######

Eat right. Stay fit. Die anyway.

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Continued from front page

Ray said the Avanti ran fine when he got it but the front end was misaligned and the tires were in bad shape. He replaced the front and rear springs and shocks, the dual exhaust system along with new tires and alignment. Since then he and Julie have had 18,000 miles of trouble free touring. He did repaint it himself a year after the purchase.

The story of the 1963-64 Studebaker Avanti by Dan Jedlicka

The rakish 1963-64 Studebaker Avanti was among the most daring 1960s American cars, a modern masterpiece with totally unique American styling that even top exotic Italian auto stylists wouldn't attempt to do.

The Avanti had advanced safety features, when no U.S. automaker particularly gave a darn about safety. Such features included a built-in roll bar, padded interior and door latches that became structural body members when closed.

Performance? An Avanti with a supercharged V-8 was one of the fastest 1960s autos. A supercharged model hit 168 mph, while a modi- fied version reached 196 mph--a staggering speed for a 1960s production street car. Some 29 Bonneville speed records were smashed by a supercharged Avanti.

Safety? The Avanti (Italian for "forward") was the first mass-produced fiberglass-body four-passenger American car. It also was the first such car to use caliper-style disc brakes.

Studebaker was more than 100 years old when the Avanti debuted. It began making horse-drawn wagons in 1862 and produced its first cars--electric models--in 1902. But "Stude" was in deep trouble by the mid-1950s. It lacked the economy-of-scale of larger U.S. automakers and thus its cars, although good, weren't cost-competitive against giants such as General Motors. However, Studebaker survived the 1950s by producing compact economy Lark models, which sold well in the depressed economy late in that decade, along with some sporty Hawk models, such as the now-classic 1956-58 Golden Hawk. But then the prosperous 1960s arrived, and Studebaker again had to offer winners from its South Bend, Indiana, headquarters and plants because Lark volume fell by more than half for 1961.

Hard-charging young Sherwood Egbert arrived as Studebaker's new president in 1961 and quickly had Lark and Hawk styling updated on a crash basis by noted Milwaukee-based designer Brooks Stevens. Stevens did the best he could while dealing with Studebaker's dated cars and engines, and Egbert felt Studebaker needed a dramatic new car. It had to really grab the public's attention to help generate much- needed sales and to rejuvenate the automaker's rather staid image. Egbert's star car was the Avanti. With Stevens updating higher-volume models, Egbert recruited flamboyant Raymond Loewy, a world-famous industrial designer who had considerable auto design experience. Loewy had come up with the startling, slick 1953 Studebaker coupe--arguably the best-styled American car of the 1950s.

Given a rough idea of what Egbert wanted the new car to look like, Loewy had the Avanti's styling done under his supervision by his hand-picked team of young Tom Kellogg and seasoned Bob Andrews and John Ebstein. To avoid distractions and interference from Stu- debaker executives, Loewy sequestered his highly talented team in a rented desert ranch house near Palm Springs, Calif.. The team knew the car was urgent business, so they worked 16 hours daily for weeks. Loewy gave his men instructions that established the Avanti's design theme, such as "Coke-shape a must" and "wedgy silhouette." In fact, GM's most famous styling chiefs worked the same way, initially giv- ing general directions and then specific instructions.

The Avanti had a coke-bottle "waist" and thin-section roof with an extra-large rear window and the built-in roll bar. Razor-edged front fenders swept back into the curved rear end and into a jacked-up tail. The front had no conventional grille--just an air scoop below a thin bumper. The hood had an asymmetrical hump, and the interior featured aircraft-style instrumentation and controls, some placed above the windshield. Occupants sat in four slim-section bucket seats similar to those in an Alfa Romeo sports car. No time or resources existed for wind-tunnel testing, but the Avanti nevertheless was highly aerodynamic--one reason it could hit nearly 200 mph. Loewy and his team had just guessed at the car's slippery shape. Continued on page 7

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Mashed Potato Donuts from our proofreader Edi Fiske

3 Large eggs 6 cups flour

2 cups sugar 4 tsps baking powder 1/3 cup cooking oil 1 1/2 tsps baking soda

1 1/2 cups mashed potato 1 tsp salt 1 1/2 cups buttermilk 1 tsp nutmeg

Beat eggs until frothy, add sugar gradually and beat together until creamy. Add oil, cooled potato and stir. (Important not to beat anymore). To this add the buttermilk alternately with the dry ingredients and stir until mealy. Refrigerate over night and fry out the next day. Good Luck

From page 6

There also was no time or money for steel body dies, so the Avanti body was made of fiberglass. The car was enormously strong, with a shortened, beefy Lark convertible frame and sport suspension with front/rear anti-sway bars and rear radius rods for superior handling. Powering the Avanti was a modified version of Studebaker's dated but sturdy 289-cubic-inch V-8. This "Jet Thrust" engine developed 240 horsepower in standard "R1" form, with such items as a 3/4-race high-lift camshaft, dual-breaker distributor, four-barrel carburetor and dual exhausts. It developed 290 horsepower in supercharged "R2" form. There also were a few supercharged "R3" V-8s with 335 horsepower and an experimental non-supercharged "R4" 280-horsepower V-8 with dual four-barrel carburetors. Then there was an amazing twin-supercharged, fuel-injected "R5" V-8 with magneto ignition. It produced an astounding 575 horsepower.

To Studebaker's delight, the public was crazy about the Avanti, which drew many to Studebaker showrooms. It was upscale and nicely equipped. The 1963 and 1964 models each had a $4,445 base price, when a less practical Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray two-seat coupe cost $4,252. But quality problems arose because Egbert rushed the car into production, knowing time was running out for Studebaker. It didn't help that production was delayed for months because Molded Fiberglass Co., which also built Corvette fiberglass body parts, botched Avanti bodies--forcing Studebaker to set up its own fiberglass production. Many Avanti buyers canceled advance orders and bought a Corvette or other sporty cars. Making matters worse, the word was out that Studebaker was on the ropes and might go out of business. In fact, it closed its South Bend operation in December, 1963, when the last 1964 Avanti barely left its plant.

Suffering from ill health, Egbert had left that November. Studebaker built Larks and a few other models in Canada until 1966. The Avanti 240- and 290-horsepower V-8s actually were available for some 1964 models. But Studebaker engines were gone by 1965, so two Chevy en- gines were offered for 1965 and 1966, when Studebaker production ceased after totaling 8,947 cars that year. Only 3,834 Avantis were built in 1963 and just 809 were classified as 1964 models. The general rule is that the 1964 Avanti had round headlight surrounds and the 1964 model had square ones. A fair number of Studebaker Avantis have survived because of their no-rust fiberglass body and solid construction. A 1963-64 R1 is valued at $10,800 in good condition and at $20,500 if in excellent shape, according to the Cars of Particular Interest guide. It says a supercharged 1963-64 R2 is worth $12,000 in good shape and $22,800 in excellent condition. However, the Sports Car Market value guide puts figures for an R1 at $16,000 to $28,000 and at $20,000 to $32,000 for an R2.

The Avanti was too good to die quickly. It lasted for decades after 1963 with Chevy V-8s after being initially rescued by two successful South Bend Studebaker dealers, Nate Altman and Leo Newman. Altman and Newman bought all rights to the car, formed Avanti Motor Corp., and continued to have it hand-built for years in an old Studebaker plant as the "Avanti II," powered by a Corvette V-8. The revived car's chief engineer was Gene Hardig, the original Avanti head engineer. "The Avanti was too sensational for us to just let it go," Altman told me during an interview at the Avanti II factory. He was wildly enthusiastic about the Avanti and worked tirelessly for more than a decade to make it successful. The Avanti II was nearly the same as the Studebaker version, although Altman removed the car's slight front rake, substi- tuted the modern Corvette V-8, gave it much higher quality and let buyers choose various high-grade interior materials such as carpets. Other individuals continued to build the car for years when Altman passed away in the mid-1970s and the Altman family sold the operation.

The Avanti still turns heads. No car has ever looked like it, and none probably ever will.

WHEEL TRACKS.. vtauto.org November 2014 PAGE 7 Dave’s Garage by Dave Sander

Please send all inquiries to [email protected]

Trailer Tires

Trailer tires have a tough life. Drivers are unlikely to feel any notable differences in road noise or road feel with trailer tires. Trailer tires are often subjected to harsh curb hits and road bumps. Tandem axle tires also experience harsh scrubbing due to making tight turns in parking lots and on corners. Trailer tires are quite different from traditional passenger car and truck tires. Trailer tires are not designed for either tractive effort or steering adhesion. The tread design is not optimized for ride comfort or noise reduction. Most importantly, the side walls are designed to reduce trailer sway and provide optimum control. The two biggest enemies to trailer tires are abrasion and heat. As trailer tires heat up, their structure begins to disintegrate and weaken. The load capacity gradually decreases as the heat and stress caused by higher speed increases. As with any tire, trailer tires have a "shelf life." Time weakens a trailer tire too. Three to five years is the projected life of a trailer tire. Obviously, the type of use and number of duty cycles influences the service life of the tire. Weight carried and speeds driven are the biggest factors influencing tire life. In approximately three years, roughly one-third of the tire's strength is gone. The mileage life of a trailer tire is generally 5,000 to 12,000 miles. Which tires should you use? Trailer tires should match each other, and the load rating should ex- ceed the combined weight of the trailer and load by about 20 percent. What is a tire with a rating of "ST"? "ST" tires feature materials and construction to meet the higher load requirements and demands of trailering. The polyester cords are bigger than they would be for a comparable "P" or "LT" tire. The steel cords have a larger diameter and greater tensile strength to meet the additional load requirements. "ST" tire rubber compounds contain more chemicals to resist weather and ozone cracking. Always inflate trailer tires to the maximum inflation indicated on the sidewall. Check inflation when the tires are cool. If the tires are hot to the touch from operation, add three psi to the max inflation. Under inflation is the number one cause of trailer tire failure. An under inflated tire will flex needlessly, and run much hotter than a fully inflated tire.

Keys to Avoiding Trouble from Carlisle tire: - The ideal storage for trailer tires is in a cool, dark garage at maximum inflation. - Use tire covers to protect the tires from direct sunlight. - Place thin boards or plywood sections between the tire and the pavement. - Clean the tires using mild soap and water ONLY. - Do not use tire-care products containing alcohol or petroleum distillates. - Inspect the tires for any cuts, snags, bulges or punctures. - Check the inflation before towing and again before the return trip. - Replace trailer tires every three to five years, whether they look like they're worn out or not.

Trailer Tire Warranty: The Carlisle trailer tire warranty applies to the original purchaser for three years from the date of purchase or until the tread depth reaches 3/32". -The OE (original equipment) warranty goes into effect at the time of the trailer purchase

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VAE Gossip by GCF

I would rather not give names here, the negotiations might be still on-going. But wouldn’t you think you would have your hands...and brain full when you are on a Gypson Tour? You know; watching for clues while driving a 50 mile route, in the hopes that you will win the competition and be able to put your own Gypson Tour on next year. Well, it seems we have a member with the ability to do all of that plus watching out for possible purchases. This member spotted the rear quarter panel of his favorite brand sticking out from under a tarp in a barn and I understand commenced to stop and negotiate the item under the tarp! I wonder if he would be interested in giving classes to the rest of us to sharpen our multi-tasking abilities.

I received a call from Gary Olney the other day. He was with Vin Cassidy and company waiting outside the Hershey Car Show gates for the grounds to open. There is another whole dimension of vendor trading that most of us have never heard about and is really interesting. When there is a car show, in many cases, many hours before the show opens it’s field for the vendors to set up; the vendors get inline outside the gates and buy or barter from one another. Gary knows I purchased a ‘15 Dodge Touring a couple of summers ago that needs a lot of work. He had found a pair of rear fenders for the ‘15 in the Hershey “out-side-the –gate-sale” and wanted to know if I needed them. As it is, the rear fenders are some of the best items on the car...but there is a long list that needs much help. Thank you for thinking of me Gary.

Remember the article last month about Richard Duda of Morrisville participating in the motorcycle Can- nonball Endurance Race from Florida to Washington state? The 17 day race ended on September 20th and out of the 100 motorcycles and riders who began the 3938 mile race only 32 completed every mile. Out of that 32 there were 24 riders who had a perfect score and Richard was one of those 24. A scoring point was awarded for each mile they covered within the daily time limit. Congratulations to Richard and his 1924 Henderson Deluxe motorcycle.

I ran across an artist gent who does some nice pen & ink pieces. Nic Wambach was selling his wears in a booth in the NE Kingdom, he comes up from his home in the Catskills every summer. When I asked he told me he also does commission pieces of our old cars. He will do your car from a photo using the photo’s back- ground and if you like he will use a different background. He seemed like a really nice gent in our short conversation, one of his drawings is this ‘47 Caddy to the right. If I remember cor- rectly, he charges $150. His phone number is 914-466-0850.

Did I mention my trip to the salvage yard with a small load of stuff? A damaged car frame, a no-good engine, some empty tin and steel cans...about 1900 pounds and they gave me a check for $170.00. Not bad huh? Now what would happen if we showed up with a 14,300 Colman Airport Tug? At 9 cents a pound that comes to around $1300.00….hmmmm.

Personally, one of the VAE gatherings I most look forward to is the Christmas meet. As you see on page 2 the location has changed. The Yankee swap is fun. The gift I want to take has been in my shop for about 3 months. All I have to do is “electrify” it and it will be ready for the big day. It has been announced that Alvis might be there, now what is that all about?

VAE’s September Computer Tip From John Lavallee

Would you like to categorize and save some of your emails so you can find them later on? Say you would like to have a category for your favorite putt-mobile and another for your bosom buddy in the car club….

All you have to do is go to a “local folder” to the right of your email page and right-click. A box will pop up creating a new folder and will ask what you would like to call that folder. Presto….you have your “putt-mobile” folder. When you get an email you want to keep in that folder just “left-click” onto that email holding the “left-click” down and “drag” the email into that folder.

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A report from Brian Warren of our September meet at the Vintage Garage in Stowe

At first glance their building looks like just another red barn, but inside is a world class facility. We had between 20 to 25 members attend another fantastic meet at a business that has found a niche in the mechanical restoration of high end, pre war, British automobiles such as Rolls-Royce and Bentleys. We were in the presences of Vintage Garage Founder Frank Cooke one of only about 5 facilities in the country capable of producing the quality work necessary to keep these older, unique automobiles running for a long time. A portion of their work consists of making proper repairs after other shops thought they knew how to rebuild a Rolls engine, but got it wrong. After only a few minutes of Pierce and Rick (our host), describing some of the machinery and techniques required to complete successful rebuilds, it was easy to see this wasn't just your run of the mill garage pumping out small block Chevy engines everyday (not that there is anything wrong with that). Many of the tedious pain staking steps performed, are done the same way the factory did it 75 years ago (no short cuts here).

1924 3 liter Bentley. The repair is for a bent exhaust valve after owners friend over raced the engine after being confused between the brake and accelerator pedals. This Bentley had The engine rework shop. 2 Rolls competed in and won the 24 hours of Le engines ready for Babbitt bearing Mans for 2 consecutive years back in the main crank fitting. twenties. The body is fabric over wood.

After the shop tour, we were surprised with freshly prepared becon burgers, hot dogs, and steaming hot chili sup- plied by our gracious hosts. Thank you Pierce and Rick!

Some sightings during a trip to Montana… As usual, during our annual trip to Montana to visit our son and family, I'm on the lookout for interesting vehicles. During these '37 Ford truck in Mobridge, frequent stops, Nancy is quite tolerant, but chooses to read or nap! These cars/trucks are South Dakota. quite rust free and fairly numerous. There are probably 6 to 8 such vehicles on our son's 5 mile commute to work. Thought you might enjoy seeing a sample of what's out there. Gary Olney Your choice; woodpeckers or

'39 Ford (or maybe both). Late 40's Dodge school bus on Route 12 in North or South Dakota.

Below, a 1937 Dodge Panel Truck - No paint, but rough, but desirable. Asking $5500. no rust Right, through on Circa 1940 Dodge this Dodge in Cabover. An excellent, Ingomar, nearly blemish free Montana. body.

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From Gael Boardman “A short history of how we have become a non-profit 501c3 And a few goings-on since….”

Birthing the V.A.A.S. When the VAE was advised to reincorporate to correct some of our non-profit tax issues the Vermont Antique Automobile Society was conceived. Getting the call to organize were Gene Fodor and Dick Wheatley. Attorney Brian Murphy of Burlington prepared the legal paperwork in January of 2009. Gael Boardman was designated President with Rod Rice and Lloyd Davis as directors until further organization allowed for a full slate, this work was done on March 30th, 2009. Still struggling with paperwork to submit to the IRS, we replaced Rod Rice, due to his untimely death, with Willis Spaulding, and we submitted. On February 4th, 2010 we received a request from the IRS for more information on February 21st. We resubmitted again for 501c3 non-profit status. We also hired a professional CPA by the name of Wally Tapia, with extensive non-profit experience, to assist us. Mr. Tapia wrote a follow-up to the IRS on the 22nd of February. On march 9th we received a reply with more requests, suggesting that we weren’t really qualified to be a non-profit 501c3 and that we reapply for another designation. We didn’t. We kept up regular correspondence with the IRS. Our final packet went off at the end of July of that year with revisions reflecting the IRS questions. On August 12th, 2010 we received a letter from Robert Choi, director of exempt organizations (rulings and agree- ments) informing us of their acceptance of our application, as modified several times, that we are now the “VT. Antique Automobile Society 501c3. We formally organized with the following officers; Gael Boardman– president, Lloyd Davis– vice president, Jan Sander– secretary, Dick Wheatley– treasurer, Bob Chase– director, Andy Barnett– director, Leo Laferrier– director. We met monthly and determined what VAE activities should be aligned under the 501c3 status. These turned out to be the Wheel Tracks publication, our vtauto.org website and our scholarship/awards programs. We had a very busy year with major improvements in all of the responsibilities. The website reorganization and reaction amazed us with over 40 thousand “hits” that first year of 2012. The Wheel Tracks got better with the VAAS board helping as an editorial board. Gary Fiske and Wendell Noble have been regular attendees as well as other interested members. We created the Golden Wrench Award which recognizes high school juniors in our 16 state career centers for their advanced work in automotive technology. The Golden Wrench Award and it’s wide acceptance instantly defined who we were as a non-profit and the wonderful route we had chosen to take. To date, our organization has touched the lives of 35 Vermont students in a most positive way.

We continued with the same officers being reelected at the VAE annual meet- ing as we were really too busy to change. We reported all of our progress at the VAE/VAAS annual meeting in November 2012 and received encouragement from the membership. We also got authorization for a new budget item; our new “Mobile Museum”. The IRS was quite interested in our mention of a “museum”. As such, museums, are viewed as great 501c3 material. Gene Fodor had sent us a newsletter copy from a New Jersey car club that claimed that they were a mobile museum. They got IRS acceptance that way, just their old cars, no buildings, no kidding! It occurred to us that we could do one better. We have the antique cars for sure…..but what if we also had a mobile display vehicle that would also work as a classroom on wheels? We looked for some time thinking a bread truck or box van. As luck would have it my son, Owen, had stumbled on a Bluebird flat-front school bus available in less salty NY state. The price was right and it had lots of room so Jim Sears and I went to look at it. We found a low mileage Cummins powered automatic that had lots of room and was easy to drive. We debated. It was probably going to sell quickly. We bought it. If the club decided against such a purchase then Jim and I owned a bus. The club did smile on the purchase and now it’s all ours. Jim and I quickly put together a “bus retrieval team” and he and I joined Duane Leach and Wendell Noble for the trip to New York. After a smoky start up (the bus had been sitting for a while) our first pilot, Duane, rated the bus as “good”. We took turns driving it to Duane’s house in Fairfax. In ensuing weeks we got better seats, a new rear door and related lights, fixtures and a mud flap (it didn’t need one but Wendell wanted a decorative Bluebird flap). Next the bus went to the diesel program department at VTC where our good friends under the direction of VAE member Steve Belitsos gave it the safety once-over and pronounced it “good”. There have been many other bus improvements and we are close to being ready for it’s ‘next life’. We want our BLUEBIRD to take us all into our next great adventure supporting our education mission of “preservation, protection, promotion and appreciation of automobile history and technology”. We do have a plan for the Bluebird. Our VTC Scholarship Program is reaching the college level student. Our Golden Wrench Award is reaching into our high schools. Our plan for the Bluebird is to reach into our elementary schools. With displays and lesson plans in hand, and a possible antique car in tow, we intend to be visiting Vermont schools in 2015. We will need some help in this exciting adventure, we welcome any and all to give the Bluebird mission a hand. WHEEL TRACKS.. vtauto.org November 2014 PAGE 11

For all you “Newspaper Nuts”

present company included...

 The Wall Street Journal is read by the people who run the country.  The Washington Post is read by peo- ple who think they run the country.  The New York Times is read by people who think they should run the country and who are very good at crossword puzzles.  USA Today is read by people who

think they ought to run the country

but don’t really understand the New York Times. They do, however, like their statistics shown on pie charts.  The Los Angeles Times is read by peo- ple who wouldn’t mind running the country— if they could find the time— and if they didn’t have to leave Southern California to do it. The Locomobile Company of America was an automobile manufacturer founded in  The Boston Golbe is read by people 1899. For the first two years it was located in Watertown, Massachusetts, but produc- whose parents used to run the coun- tion was transferred to Bridgeport, Connecticut, during 1900, where it remained until try and did a far superior job of it, the company's demise in 1929. The company manufactured affordable, small steam thank you very much. cars until 1903, then production switched entirely to internal combustion-powered lux-  The New York Daily News is read by ury automobiles. Locomobile was taken over in 1922 by Durant Motors and went out of people who aren’t too sure who’s run- business in 1929. The cars were always sold under the brand name Locomobile. ning the country and don’t really care as long as they can get a seat on the Locomobile began by producing steam cars. The steam Locomobiles were unreliable, train. finicky to operate, prone to paraffin fires, had small water tanks (getting only 20 mi  The New York Post is read by people per tank, and took time to raise steam; Rudyard Kipling described one example as a who don’t care who’s running the coun- "nickel-plated fraud". Initially, they were offered with a single body style only, an try as long as they do something real- inexpensive Runabout at US$600 Nevertheless, they were a curiosity and middle-class ly scandalous. Americans clamored for the latest technology. Salesmen, doctors and people needing  The Miami Herald is read by people quick mobility found them useful. More than four thousand were built between 1899 who are running another country but and 1902 alone. In 1901, Locomobile offered seven body styles at prices between need the baseball scores. US$600 and US$1,400. Most Locomobiles had simple twin-cylinder engines (3x4",  The San Francisco Chronicle is read 76.2x102mm; 57ci, 927cc) and a wire wrapped 500 psi flash boiler burning naphtha. by people who aren’t sure there is a Typical of the product was the 1904 Runabout, which seated two passengers and sold country…. or that anyone is running it; for US$750. The two-cylinder steam engine was situated amidships of the but if so, they oppose all that they wood-framed car. By now, the car had improved boilers and a new water pump, stand for. There are occasional ex- manufactured by the Overman Wheel Company in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts. This ceptions if the leaders are handi- company itself built a steamer, the Victor Steamer. capped minority feminist atheist During the Boer War, Locomobile did establish a new mark of sorts, becoming the dwarfs who also happen to be illegal first ever automobile to be used in war; it was a generator and searchlight tractor and aliens from any country or galaxy pro- catering vehicle, with the useful ability (in British eyes, at least) of being able to brew vided, of course, that they are not a cup of tea by tapping the boiler. Republicans. This was, unfortunately, not a sure way to guarantee commercial success, even in  The National Enquirer is read by peo- Britain, and Locomobile started experimenting with gasoline internal combustion ple trapped in line at the grocery engines in 1902, starting with a four-cylinder steel-chassis model designed by Andrew store. L. Riker. This encouraged the firm to drop steam vehicles the following year, selling the Stanley brothers back their rights for US$20,000.

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Greetings from Chris Cartier Join us for a continued walk through the Alphabet and his next “Auto ABCs” learning about obscure American Auto Makes. We are going back in the alphabet this month to pick up a We are doing “D” This Month….. letter that we missed and that is “D”. “The Dagmar"

"D" is for "DAGMAR"

This month's foray into the obscure makes led me to the letter D. And staying true to the purpose of the series, I did not choose the Duesenberg. Though Duesenbergs are my favorite make of automobile, bar none, they are quite well known and won't help me (us) expand our knowledge of the antique car world. So "D" is for "Dagmar!" The Dagmar automobile was the luxury sports edi- tion of its companion make - the Crawford. The Crawford automobile started out as Crawford Brothers bicycles aban- doned the bicycle business and entered the new frontier of the automobile age at the turn of the century in Hagerstown, MD. One of the original financial backers of the Crawford automobile was a very successful Danish immigrant, and fellow Hagerstown resident, Mathias Peter Moller, who had become the largest and most widely known pipe organ manufacturer in the USA at the time. According to "The Coachbuilt Automobile" @ coachbuilt.com, the Crawford had limited success, and as an assembled car, was not exceptional. In the early 20's the Crawfords then sold their minority stockholder stake to Moller, who set about shutting that line down, and came out with a diametrically different, flashy, and sporty car, named for the medieval Queen Dagmar of Bohemia (or perhaps the more contemporary Queen Dagmar of Denmark). The debut car used the Continental 70 hp, 6 cylinder motor, had a very high radiator, a 135" wheelbase, and came with a 35 gallon gas tank! That was plenty of gas to tote around! It also used Timken axles and sold for $3500 fob Hagerstown! The make lasted a few years, G.N. Georgano's "The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars: 1885 - present" shows that they were made from 1922 -1927. It also recounts that Mathias P. Moller expanded that manufacturing line to include other makes including "the Standish, the Paramount, Luxor, Astor, Five Boro, 20th Century, and Moller taxicabs!" The Roaring Twenties, indeed! In my research, I found that some things haven't changed. Even in the 1920's car advertisers were correlating pretty women with their particular car to encourage sales! Dagmar was no different. In 1924, it gave Miss Philadelphia (who became Miss USA) a brand new Dagmar & of course had to photograph the two beauties together! Well, Mr. Moller wound up his car manufacturing after making a big sedan for himself and his family and moving back to Denmark in 1927. He certainly "23 skidoo'd" out of town before the crash of '29! Hey, "D" is for "Dagmar", an interesting make from a pipe organist!

vaE mEmbEr, roy martin, sEnds this sad noticE oF a homElEss man’s Passing…..

Time is like a river. You cannot touch the water twice, because the flow that has passed will never pass again. Enjoy every moment of life.

As a bagpiper, I play many gigs. Recently I was asked by a funeral director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man. He had no family or friends, so the service was to be at a pauper's cemetery in the Nova Scotia back country. As I was not familiar with the backwoods, I got lost and, being a typical man, I didn't stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour late and saw the funeral guy had evidently gone and the hearse was nowhere in sight. There were only the diggers and crew left and they were eating lunch. I felt badly and apologized to the men for being late. I went to the side of the grave and looked down and the vault lid was already in place. I didn't know what else to do, so I started to play. The workers put down their lunches and began to gather around. I played out my heart and soul for this man with no family and friends. I played like I've never played before for this homeless man. And as I played "Amazing Grace", the workers began to weep. They wept, I wept, we all wept together. When I finished, I packed up my bagpipes and started for my car. Though my head was hung low, my heart was full. As I opened the door to my car, I heard one of the workers say, "I never seen anything like that before, and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years." Apparently, I'm still lost....it's a man thing.

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A note from VAE member Richard Reinstein to Richard Maclay…... As an VAE member, I've been following your trials and tribulations on your (somewhat radical) modification of your Rover. I'm curious as to why you've chosen to undertake such a large modification of what appeared to be an original unmolested example of a Rover to a BMW?? The car seemed to be in good original condition according to the last article in Wheel Tracks. It seems to me you could have retained the Rover power train and upgraded it for improved performance as there probably are performance upgrades available to the suspension and drive trains for these vehicles, rather than go the route of cloning a BMW in "Rover clothing." Regarding a radiator, are you prevented from using the original Rover radiator because of space restrictions? Contact Beaudoin's Auto Radiator in Burlington. I believe they can fabricate a radiator for your application. Prepare to shell out some greenbacks for a custom radiator. Their number is (802) 863-3138 8 Home Ave., Burlington, VT 05401. Forgive my impertinence, but my curiosity got the best of me. By disclosure, I'm an old Chevy nut. Good luck & Cheers, Richard

Reply from Mr. Maclay…. The modification of ROVER is a challenge. It's not supposed to be logical. I have done the following: 1. Installed a 3.0 liter BMW N55 engine. When DINAN tuned by altering the DME [vehicle computer], the car will have 392 hp and be capable of 179 mph. [I won't do that] 2. The rear end is a Kugel [La Habra, CA] with a FORD 9 inch differential at 39/13. The rear brakes are JAGUAR inboard disc with swing axles, all chrome plated or stainless steel. 3. The front end is a Kugel unit, cut down to place the ANKEI mag wheels and tires inside the wheel wells. 4. Moved the steering column right-to-left [there are bolt holes in the firewall on the left side that ROVER put there for mounting the steering for sales in France, Belgium, Holland, and Italy].

ROVER is a labor of love. I am an old professor from UVM mechanical engineering. In 1976, I had a sabbatical at Cambridge University in England. While there, my wife and I met a couple, the man being an older student in archeology. Brian had a ROVER 100, 1959. Four years ago, Brian and Lee came from New Zealand, where he is in the government in Wellington. They attended our 50th wedding anniversary. They flew into New York, came up to Vermont, then rode with us in our SUBURBAN to southern Wisconsin for the 50th party. Along the way, we looked at Cambridge photos and, of course, the ROVER 100 appeared in several of them. At that time, I decided to do this project. You know most of what happened next; it has appeared in the WHEELTRACKS. magazine. I've pretty much decided to use a standard BMW 335i radiator with a DINAN tuning kit intercooler. I will be going to Iowa next week on a business trip so will go to Ankeny to visit SPAL, the creators of some fairly exotic cooling equipment for race cars and dragsters. MAYBE I'll use an SPAL fan or fans to get the cooling I want. You're a CHEVY man. I can identify with that. In 1967, I drove my 1958 CHEVY CARRYALL up the Alaska Highway to Fairbanks, putting the transmission out of it near Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory. [1525 miles of gravel] A wrecked CHEVY pickup, a cutting torch, a newly drilled bolt hole, and the pickup transmission was fitted to the CARRYALL. We got home with it.

BTW….. That “Road Trip” To Alaska PLAN is still sitting on the table. Last month’s Wheel Tracks covered the trip fairly well…..remember it on page 12? Anyone up for an adventure????????? Call me. Richard McLay (802) 658-6064

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Order Your VAE Name Tag November FREE: 7 tires,23 inch (33x5) and 3 tires 700-17. Write $7.00 check to: Phyllis Skinner Bumper Sticker... PO Box 208 Northfield Falls, VT Selling, at a cheap price, 9 new tailpipes with sur- 05664-0208 face rust for "make your own", mostly 2 - 1/4 dia, If everything is and several new mufflers of various large sizes. Selling 28 LaSalle radiator, 27 Pack- For Sale….. 1938 License Plate # 29-251, White coming your way, ard radiator with shell (426) ,37 Packard 120 en- Background, Blue Numbers. good condition. Buy you’re in the wrong gine,36Packard transmission. Call Roy Martin at Now for $ 65.00. lane! 802-862-6374 Also an awesome find . Vintage 'Gulf No-Nox' Orange gas Gasoline Wooden gauge for early Ford Cowl tanks, square tanks, oval tanks and other cars too. 1" x 17". With advertising 'That For Sale… 1930 Franklin Coupe. Needs total Good gulf Gasoline and Supreme Motor Oil'. restoration, 90% complete. $27,500 OBO. Call M. Hayden Janes, Richford, 802-848-3622. Found on craigslist in an estate settlement and a perfect example of why you should downsize while For Sale…. Gene Town’s 1938 Studebaker you are still kicking. The car’s real value is in the Commander. A $7K range but these folks want to make a killing... member spotted it along the road in Essex with a for sale sign in the window. For Sale...1973 Mercedes 450SLC, silver No other info gray, power sunroof, with 157,000 plus miles on available. For the car. Odometer doesn’t work so true mileage location call is unknown. This spring I had the following Hal Boardman at 802-309-2506 work done by a Mercedes mechanic. Tune up, front end work, rust repair on underside, and For Sale…. power windows repaired and adjusted. Price 1936Chevrolet reduced to $6500. Jim Sears 802-482-2698 Master, 38K miles, Fairfax Barter anyone?.... I have a spot I would really like to owner bought place an old gas pump but I don’t have one. It can be a while in high little rusty and a little beat-up but complete would be nice. school in I will trade this L.B. White 170K BTU construction LP 1965. $3500.00 heater. The heater is not vented so you should not use it in 1937 a closed area. I used it for a winter to get my shop up to call Jim Elworth at 802-849-6961 temp until the wood stove took over, then shut it off. Works great, new price around $1700.00. Call Gary Fiske 802-933-7780 For Sale…. 1931 Chevrolet AE Special Sedan. Org 6 cyl. Engine– Trans. Org upholstery, older repaint,

no rust, solid car, For Sale… 1989 Lincoln Town Car. good driver, dual side 3rd. Owner with 99K miles. All mounts, trunk. works and works very well. $6500. $10,000 or best offer. Call Ray Tomlinson at Call Jim at 802-878-4340 802-226-7422

This is part of a note from Bruce Levitch of Arizona….. Dear Wheel Tracks, My wife, Margaret, and I attended your car show in Stowe for the first time this past August, we stayed at the Green Mountain Inn and had a perfect view of the parade. Having attended many of the major car shows and auctions in the great Southwest, you folks did a great job putting on a wonderful event. It is evident you have been doing if for a lot of years. Many people were shocked that we would travel 3000 miles to attend your car show. We are hoping to get away from our summer heat by finding a summer place in Vermont. Hopefully, in the near future we will have found a place in your state and I will have my ’67 Corvair Monza in your parade. BTW, we have now become members of the VAE.

Could you please put this ad in your next newsletter? Wanted…. Tonka, Structo and Hubley cars and trucks. Contact [email protected] or 480—786-1767

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November 2014 VERMONT AUTOMOBILE ENTHUSIASTS Please Send Dues or Address Changes to: Christina McCaffrey Membership Secretary 89 Ledge Road Burlington, VT 05401-4140 [email protected]

This beauty belonging to Bill Fagan was spotted Bill Erskine, 1998 VAE President Within ourhis 1910 recent Sears Gypson “High Wheeler” Tour

Enjoy Wheel Tracks in full color by going to WWW. VTAUTO.ORG

Above left is a beautiful 1977 MGB. It was the car that Chuck Gonyeau drove to the car show in Stowe this year, Chuck is one of the folks who runs the car corral. After saying it was not for sale to a lot of folks...guess what, he sold it and bought this ’73 Mercedes 450SL that was parked about 60 feet away in the corral. Which would you like to have in your garage?

Above is a picture of a ’27 Dodge Touring that is for sale in Santa Rosa, California. They do the tours differently out there! Someone thought is might be a good purchase for a VAE member into old Dodges. Hmmmmm